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United States Patent | 6,062,729 |
Ni ,   et al. | May 16, 2000 |
A method and apparatus for measuring the temperature of an object, such as a substrate, during processing. The object is illuminated by a light source. Infrared light that is transmitted through the object is then collected and transmitted to a photodiode. The amount of light transmitted through the substrate varies as a function of substrate temperature. The photodiode generates a signal in response to the light transmitted to the photodiode and an analyzing device generates a real-time temperature reading based on the signal. The photodiode may include at least one silicon photodiode or a plurality of photodiodes made from germanium or indium/gallium/arsenide.
Inventors: | Ni; Tuqiang (Fremont, CA); Barnes; Michael (San Francisco, CA) |
Assignee: | Lam Research Corporation (Fremont, CA) |
Appl. No.: | 050897 |
Filed: | March 31, 1998 |
Current U.S. Class: | 374/161; 374/121; 374/124; 374/126; 374/128; 374/131; 374/137 |
Intern'l Class: | G01J 005/10; G01N 025/00 |
Field of Search: | 374/121,127,130,131,161,2,128,124,126 |
4956538 | Sep., 1990 | Moslehi | 374/161. |
5183338 | Feb., 1993 | Wickersheim | 374/131. |
5255286 | Oct., 1993 | Moslehi et al. | 374/161. |
5270222 | Dec., 1993 | Moslehi | 437/8. |
5326171 | Jul., 1994 | Thompson et al. | 374/128. |
5568978 | Oct., 1996 | Johnson et al. | 374/161. |
"Model DRS 1000 for In-Situ Temperature Measurement"; commercial literature from Thermionics Northwest Inc.; 2 pages, (no date). |